Scanning 101: P1 Why Scan?
Scanning 101
Who doesn’t like to take photos? Photos are a vivid reminder of where we have been, our experiences shared with others and times long gone. But having so many boxes, bags and albums of print photos can be stressful and overwhelming. Especially if your photos are not stored well, if you are contemplating a move or you have inherited media you haven't even gone through, it can feel like an anvil around your neck.
I know, I know! The easy way out would be to just box it all up and send it to a big scanning company. That isd not the right move! That actually doubles your chaos. If you send your photos to a scanning company without organizing them first, you are wasting time and money and creating digital spaghetti. Kids don't want to inherit a printed mess, but they also don't want your digital chaos. What the generations to come will want is a cohesive organized story.
What is Scanning
Let’s start at the beginning. What is scanning? There are so many aspects to scanning. The definition of scanning is: the act of systematically moving a finely focused beam of light or electrons over a surface in order to produce an image of it for analysis or transmission (according to Vocabulary.com). When we go to the doctor’s office or a restaurant, we observe or even participate in scanning. The front desk person may scan your ID and insurance card for their records and our camera can scan a QR code to view a menu.
In this blog's focus, it is the act of turning a photo or slide or negative into a digital image. And there are various ways to do this. There are so many scanning choices: scan yourself, find a photo manager to scan for you or send away to one of the larger scanning companies. I will discuss these choices in the coming blogs, but first I must discuss why scan your photos and what you can (should) do before you scan your photos.
Reasons to Scan Your Photo Collection
There are so many reasons to have your print photos digitized! The top three reasons are to create a backup, to be able to share the photos easily and for restoration purposes.
Create a Backup: I am not sure where you print photos are stored currently, but if you are like most people, they are stored in boxes, bags, albums and frames in various places around the house and in the garage. Every passing day, your print photos are deteriorating, fading and collecting dust and even worse subject to water, fire or other natural disasters. Scanning the print photos creates a digital backup so that you can preserve the photos for generations to come. When you only have one copy of your collection, it is at risk to perish forever.
Share Your Photos: When your photos are digitized, there are so many options to share them and not just by text or email. A quick and easy way to share your photos is with a digital frame. I recommend a NixPlay frame. Not only can you continually add to your home’s digital frame photo collection, but you can set up a digital frame for a loved one, such as a parent or child. You can seamlessly add photos to their frame and surprise them with amazing moments! Another great way to share photos, especially of an event or special trip is with a photo book. There are so many companies out there that make the creation of the book fast and easy with templates and guides. I use Miller’s Lab for my clients (with my company Sunflower Photo Solutions), which is only to the trade, but they have a consumer facing company called Mpix. Both have exceptional design options, quality printing and rapid delivery. Who wouldn’t want to celebrate and share their amazing story and legacy?
Restore Your Photos: At the very least, when you look to a scanning company to digitize your collection you should be asking a few very important questions on how they will handle your collection (see the top questions to ask in another post). At a minimum, light color correction should be done on the digitized photos. Let’s face it, these print photos are anywhere from 20 years old at a minimum to possible a 100 or more, and photos fade with time. Even if you stored those photos correctly in the correct environment, they would lose vibrancy, possibly oxidize and turn reddish or greenish, or yellowish or silver on black and white photos. Most certified photo managers will perform basic color correction on your scanned photos, either when the photos are digitized or after as an enhancement. This can make all the difference when viewing the photo.
Have Questions on Scanning?
Scanning can seem like a big endeavor and it can get expensive as well. The best thing to do when considering scanning your photo collection is to educate your self. I am here to answer any question and read the rest of this Scanning 101 series to gain more insight. The short answer to should you scan you collection is YES! But how and when you scan is just as important, so read on!
